Phrase guide

at the mercy of

prep · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

prep

Meaning 1

In the power of; defenceless/defenseless against.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

Examples

  • The ball game is scheduled for Saturday, but we're still at the mercy of the weather.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

12 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: تَحْتَ رَحْمَةِ (taḥta raḥmati) — defenseless against
  • Catalan: a la mercè de — defenseless against
  • Catalan: a mercè de — defenseless against
  • Finnish: armoilla — defenseless against
  • French: à la merci de — defenseless against
  • German: den Launen ausgeliefert — defenseless against
  • Italian: alla mercé di — defenseless against
  • Italian: in balia di — defenseless against
  • Polish: na łasce — defenseless against
  • Portuguese: à mercê de — defenseless against
  • Spanish: a merced de — defenseless against
  • Spanish: a la merced de — defenseless against